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Wednesday, April 30, 2014

Mini Review: The Fault in Our Stars

Yes, I know, I know. I had not actually read any of John Green's novels prior to March (note: obviously it's been awhile since I read and wrote this...). It's most surprising because I love contemporary YA and that's Green's thing. I figured with the The Fault in Our Stars movie coming out soon I should probably get around to reading the book. After waiting a bazillion years for the book to come in at the library, I finished it in just a few hours. And I loved it.

Here's the synopsis:

Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought
her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter
inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters
suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel's story is about to be
completely rewritten.

Since I haven't been living under a rock, I knew this book was going to make me cry. In fact, I posted this picture on Instagram the day I started it, with the caption "I'm about to (finally) read THE FAULT IN OUR STARS. Will a full box of tissues be enough?"

The consensus of my Facebook and Instagram friends was no. I would definitely need more tissues! So even though I was prepared and had an idea of what was going to happen, I still found myself with tears streaming down my face. People were right. This is a tearjerker! But, it's not quite as depressing as you may think. I know reading about two teenagers who have cancer isn't exactly anyone's idea of fun but Green has written, what I think is, a fairly realistic portrayal of what teens and their families would be going through.

Hazel and Augustus aren't your normal teens and while I suppose some may criticize the way they talk as being unrealistic, I think it makes sense. These kids are faced with one of the worst things in life, cancer, and they have to grow up fast. So, I liked the way Hazel and Augustus talked and interacted with each other. I loved that they were extremely clever (both smart and funny) teens. And that they sometimes Talked in Capital Letters. They were just amazing characters to read about and get to know and fall in love with. Which what makes it so much harder to read.

There are some really amusing bits throughout the book. One of the lines that almost made spit out my tea was this one:

See? Clever girl.

There's probably not much else that I can say that others haven't. The Fault in Our Stars is a great book. I don't think it glamorizes cancer nor do I think teens shouldn't be exposed to such a book (I actually want to rage when I hear people say that). I'm excited for the movie and I think Shailene Woodley is going to nail it as Hazel. If you haven't checked out the (first) trailer, you can watch it here. I don't really have the urge to run out and read the rest of Green's novels though...none of the others really appeal to me. Maybe some day! What about you? Have you read this one? What did you think of it?

3 comments:

I definitely went through a lot of tissues when reading this book, and I'm glad I picked it up on a weekend because I refused to stop reading. Though there were a few times I stopped because I couldn't see the words from crying so much. I am so excited for this movie!